Shaningwa impressed with Otavi Town Council

22 Oct 2015 19:10pm

OTAVI, 22 OCT (NAMPA)  The Minister of Urban and Rural Development on Thursday commended the Otavi Town Council for the progress it has made over the past few years.
Minister Sophia Shaningwa expressed her satisfaction with the developmental activities taking place at Otavi in the Otjozondjupa Region in a speech delivered on her behalf by her Deputy Minister, Derek Klazen at the inauguration of the town councils new office complex.
The building was constructed with the financial support of the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development at a cost of N.dollars 12, 5 million.
The minister indicated that the physical beauty of the new council office reflects how the organisation has transformed and improved its service delivery and operations over the past five years.
Shaningwa said the Otavi Town Council presented her office with a strong and implementable turnaround strategy five years ago, and that made it possible for the town council that was once downgraded to a village council, to reclaim its town council status in 2010.
She explained that the town council rose up from a financial deficit of N.dollars 196 000 before 2010, increasing its cash flow to more than N.dollars 2 million.
The Otavi Town Council also increased its asset base, which was below N.dollars 23 000 in June 2010, to an impressive figure of more than N.dollars 98 million in July 2014.
The minister said her ministry found it necessary to inject some capital development funds into Otavi in order to assist in its quest of infrastructural development.
This resulted in the tangible and clear development activities, amongst others the tarring of roads, several housing projects and the installation of a sewage reticulation system in town and Khoaeb Extension Three, she said.
Shaningwa said it also pleases her to see several concepts of private-public partnership deals taking place with regards to the construction of houses and town land servicing in Otavi Extension Four.
The Urban and Rural Development Minister said in 2015/2016 financial year, her ministry made a budgetary allocation of N.dollars 15,8 million towards town land servicing for Otavi.
Shaningwa thanked the town council for demolishing the Single Quarters at the town, and for relocating the affected occupants to a reception area in town where each was allocated a plot of 400 square metres.
The minister then congratulated the officials that participated in the planning and developing of Otavi, including the completion of the councils office complex.
Several local and regional councillors from Windhoek, Otjiwarongo, Outapi and Grootfontein attended the official inauguration of the new building.
(NAMPA)
MS/AS/CT